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FAQ

What is a sanctuary cat?

A sanctuary cat is one who, due to particular medical or behavioral reasons, is not up for adoption. This decision is always made in the best interest of the cat. Sanctuary cats stay at House of Dreams permanently and receive all appropriate medical and dental care, as well as lots of love and attention!

What do you mean by “no-kill” shelter?

We view euthanasia purely as an act of mercy and believe it should be reserved for situations when an animal is irremediably suffering and a veterinarian has determined the animal has no chance of recovering an acceptable quality of life. This decision is never made lightly and is made with the input of veterinarians and shelter caregivers. House of Dreams does not end the lives of healthy or otherwise treatable cats due to space constraints or for reasons such as old age, special needs, etc. Any House of Dreams cat may spend the rest of their life with us if they are not adopted.

What makes House of Dreams different from other shelters?

House of Dreams is a special place with several attributes that make us unique. We are a small, all-volunteer, no-kill, free-roam cat shelter! Free-roam means that the cats here can choose to interact with one another, run around, play, look out windows, and otherwise enjoy their lives in a home-like environment outside the confines of a cage. We have found that allowing cats to live colony-style improves their physical health and wellbeing, and generally contributes to a happier life.

House of Dreams is also one of the few area shelters to have a separate, dedicated, free-roam living environment for feline leukemia positive (FeLV+) cats. Feline leukemia is not a death sentence and cats who are positive with the virus deserve to live the same quality of life that negative cats do.

Finally, we accept cats who are senior or geriatric and/or who have existing medical conditions. We believe that all cats deserve a safe place to live and a chance to be adopted into a loving family.

What does “all-volunteer” mean?

All-volunteer means that House of Dreams has no paid employees.

Do you have kittens to adopt?

We focus on senior, geriatric, and special needs/“difficult to adopt” cats, but we do sometimes have kittens to adopt. Please see Our Cats to check out the cats we have for adoption. If we do not have kittens available for adoption, most other area cat shelters and rescues will.

Where are the cats at House of Dreams from?

The cats at House of Dreams come from a number of situations. Some are surrendered by their owners, while others are from Multnomah County Animal Services or other area shelters and rescues.

How long do you keep cats?

We care for the cats at House of Dreams until they are adopted, or for the remainder of their lives. There is no “time limit” for the cats here.

Are the cats at House of Dreams spayed or neutered?

Yes! All cats are spayed or neutered before they go up for adoption. We firmly believe in spaying and neutering all pets to help prevent pet overpopulation.

To learn more about the importance of spaying and neutering pets, please check out Best Friends Animal Society's excellent informational page on the topic.

How can you have cats who are FeLV positive and negative?

These two populations are kept in separate areas of our shelter and do not come in contact with each other. Additionally, we ensure that all volunteers and visitors are trained in proper hand washing before visiting either side, and we use separate cleaning tools and dishes.

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Dr. Elsey's

The resident cats of House of Dreams thank Dr. Elsey's Products for generously supplying them with the litter they need to lead a happy, healthy life!

About House of Dreams

House of Dreams provides shelter and care for abandoned and homeless cats, with the goal of finding them permanent homes or providing them a lifetime home in our facility. We are a free-roam, no-kill, all-volunteer cat shelter located in Portland, Oregon. We are one of the only area shelters with facilities for Feline Leukemia positive (FeLV+) kitties.